Maxime Vachier-Lagrave will be eliminated this weekend unless a Chinese talent upsets the
Russian favourite, Ian NepomniachtchiMaxime Vachier-Lagrave, the world No 6, has long dreamed of qualifying as a world title candidate and going on to challenge Magnus Carlsen but the Frenchman, 29, has been left with only slender chances after his semi-final defeat by Russia’s Ian Nepomniachtchi at the Jerusalem
Grand Prix this week.
The grandmaster from Lyon has had a succession of near-misses in top events. In the last three contests for the 128-player
World Cup, which qualifies its two finalists for the eight-player candidates, he lost each time in the semi-finals, while this month he was beaten by China’s Ding Liren in the Grand Tour final at
London Olympia.